Okay, so I’ll just add two things. First of all, for those who feel they can’t speak about observance, or want to learn more, I am observant and am happy to answer questions, off the site. But I don’t judge others or try to convince people what they should do, which is why I’m not rattling stuff off here! If you want to know, ask, and I’ll answer.

Secondly, while it is an established concept that Jews try to be an “Or LaGoyim” — a Light to the Nations, this is different than proseletyzing and trying to convert. The traditional understanding (at least in my understanding) is that the Torah, as a moral guide, is for the whole world, but that doesn’t mean that everyone (in our beliefs) should convert to Judaism. Rather, in the second portion of the Torah, there is a list of 7 basic laws that we believe all people must follow. They are known as the Noachite Laws, or the 7 Laws of the Sons of Noah. They apply to the world, who are not Jews. In fact, there are Noachite Synagogues scattered around the world today — people who do not want to convert to Judaism, but believe they should follow these 7 laws, and celebrate the moral traditions of Jews.

Rabbi Schulweis, one of the most prominent progressive American rabbis, always gives these examples:

The prophet Isaiah declared that God had “created and appointed you a covenant people, a light for the nations,” and that the Talmud states that “God exiled the Jews from their homeland for one reason: to increase the number of converts.”

Jews were extremely active and successful proselytizers throughout the Roman Empire, until such activities were made a capital crime and forcibly suppressed when Christianity became the state religion.

Here’s an interesting article on the subject:

WHY THE JEWISH PEOPLE SHOULD WELCOME CONVERTS
Judaism, vol. 43, no. 3 (Summer, 1994)

http://www.convert.org/judaism.htm

Do I think it’s a good idea? You bet your Kosher turkey bacon. Am I comfortable doing it myself? Not really.